Scripture Answers Scripture
A few years ago, I heard Pastor Joseph Prince say, “Scripture answers Scripture.” Since then, I have never forgotten that message.
Today, the topic of healing has been on my heart and mind. Ironically, as I opened my Bible, two passages in John 4 and 5 caught my attention: “Jesus Heals an Official’s Son” and “Jesus Claims to Be the Son of God.” The first passage reads:
John 4:43-53
43 At the end of the two days, Jesus went on to Galilee. 44 He himself had said that a prophet is not honored in his own hometown. 45 Yet the Galileans welcomed him, for they had been in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration and had seen everything he did there.
46 As he traveled through Galilee, he came to Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. There was a government official in nearby Capernaum whose son was very sick. 47 When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die.
48 Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?”
49 The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.”
50 Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” And the man believed what Jesus said and started home.
51 While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. 52 He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied, “Yesterday afternoon at one o’clock his fever suddenly disappeared!” 53 Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him, “Your son will live.” And he and his entire household believed in Jesus.
. (Holy Bible, New Living Translation [NLT], 1996/2015, John 4:43-53)
John 5:20–21
The second passage reads:
20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. (Holy Bible, New Living Translation [NLT], 1996/2015, John 5:20–21)
John 14:12
As I read those two passages, I couldn’t help but think about John 14:12:
“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. (Holy Bible, New Living Translation [NLT], 1996/2015)
Greater Works
Both John 5:20–21 and John 14:12 mention greater works. In John 5:20–21, Jesus asserts that God has granted him authority to perform greater works for His glory. In John 14:12, Jesus also tells his disciples that when he ascends to heaven, they too will do greater works. This brings me back to Pastor Prince’s point: Scripture answers Scripture.
If the assertion that Scripture answers Scripture is true, then, based on the aforementioned scriptures, it stands to reason that Jesus has endowed his disciples (us) with the same authority that God bestowed upon him, which is the power to do greater works.
Notice, in the recount of the official’s son, Jesus did not travel to meet the boy. In fact, Jesus’s distant proclamation of restoration occurred concomitantly with the boy’s healing. In other words, from a distance, Jesus spoke the boy’s healing into existence, and restoration occurred the very moment Jesus spoke. Remember, the text says,
51 While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. 52 He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied, “Yesterday afternoon at one o’clock his fever suddenly disappeared!” 53 Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him, “Your son will live.” And he and his entire household believed in Jesus. (Holy Bible, New Living Translation [NLT], 1996/2015, John 4:51–53)
Declaration of Your Greater Works: Healing
Ultimately, if we, as Jesus’s disciples, have the power to do greater works, then it means that the moment we speak healing, it should occur. Today, I challenge those who are in need of healing. Declare healing over yourself or your loved ones. In an act of faith, write down the date and time in a journal. Next, watch to see God move.